The Abyss Gazes Also, v 20
by MasterGhandalf
Summary: An old enemy has returned and unleashed dozens of supervillains on an epic crime wave. What is he planning, and what do Raven's disturbing dreams have to do with anything? Revised version.
1. Prologue: Premonitions

**Teen Titans: The Abyss Gazes Also**

A/N: _The Abyss Gazes Also_ was the first fanfic I ever wrote, for _Teen Titans_ or any fandom. While I still love the basic idea (something I think really should have been dealt with more in the show after being set up by "Nevermore"), looking back on it now it could best be summed up as rough around the edges. Therefore along with my current writings I'm going back and revising it (which shouldn't take away from my other ongoing fics, if anyone who's reading this is following them). Therefore, I present _The Abyss Gazes Also v. 2.0_!

**Prologue: Premonitions**

_Raven stands in the heart of fire and darkness, looking down at a city that is no more. The buildings have been gutted by flames, the people turned to stone statue caught forever in the throes of agony. The land is barren and lifeless, and the sky is so choked by ash and smoke that the sun cannot be seen, assuming it exists anymore at all. The only light comes from the sea, where what was once water is now molten stone. _

_Mocking laughter echoes through the air, and then a voice speaks, as deep and terrible as the infernal depths from which it springs, a voice that shakes the earth. "__**WHAT YOU HAVE CONCEALED, YOU SHALL BECOME!**__" it thunders. "__**YOU HAVE NO OTHER CHOICE! YOUR DESTINY WILL BE FULFILLED!**__"_

_Raven listens to the voice, but she does not cower, as she might once have done. She is no longer afraid of it, or of its owner. After all, none of this is real._

_This happened almost a year ago. Her father, Trigon, the Lord of Darkness, had blasted the land and scorched the sky in his effort to bring all things into his domain, but he had failed- because of her. All he was now was a harmless nightmare. _

"_I'm not afraid of you," Raven says simply, staring into the smoke-filled sky. "Not anymore. You don't have any power over me now. You're just a figment of my imagination."_

"_Am I?" the voice asks from behind her. It has changed- it now sounds like Raven's own voice, but with a strange echoing quality to it, as though the speaker is not entirely real. Raven turns slowly to stare at the voice's source r- not her father after all, but a slender figure in a hooded red cloak, like herself in every way, except that this girl has the four glowing eyes of a demon and a twisted smile to match. _

_Raven knows this figure, for it _is_ herself- or rather, that part of herself that was born to evil, the thing that she has practiced meditation all her life to control. It does this, sometimes, appears as her father. Beast Boy and Cyborg had seen it do that once, many months ago. _

"_You are nothing more than a creation of my mind," Raven tells her dark double, refusing to be intimidated. "You don't have any power over me, and you gain nothing from being here. Go away and let me sleep."_

"_Go away?" The demon figure asks, its tone mocking. "I cannot "go away". I am part of you- forever. You may have defeated Father, but you've always known, deep down, that the one thing you fear the most is yourself. All that you accomplished was to delay the inevitable."_

"_The thing I've learned about the inevitable is that it's not always what you think it is," Raven replies. "The prophecy came true for Trigon just like he wanted, and he still lost."_

"_Think about it logically, Raven. I know you can- we both know you're the _smart_ Teen Titan. You can't bottle me up forever. Sooner or later you'll lose control, and I'll get out. I already have, a few times. I don't think that poor Dr. Light will _ever_ forget me."_

_Raven suppresses the surge of anger she feels watching her counterpart smirk. Anger is what it wants her to feel, she reminds herself, what will give it power. So instead she gives it peace and calm, closing her eyes and focusing while murmuring the name of the home she has lost- and the demon and the dreamscape waver and then fade away into nothingness…_

Raven came awake with a start, breathing heavily and still not able to shake her demon-self's words from her mind. Quickly pulling herself into an upright position, she gazed around her room for a moment, taking in the books and magical objects, reminding herself that _this_, not the blasted landscape of the dream, was real. For all her mocking words, the demon did not exist as anything but a mental construct the sorceress used to keep her emotions orderly and under control.

"Just a dream, Raven," she said softly to herself as she curled back up on the bed. "Nothing at all to worry about. Just a dream…."

But as the night passed and she tossed and turned sleeplessly, she couldn't shake the feeling that it had been something more.


	2. Chapter 1: The Escape

**Chapter 1- The Escape**

The man sat in his cell with immobility that was far too rigid to be natural, hands pressed firmly to his temples and eyes closed. He moved from this position only rarely- most often, when he had become so hungry that even prison food became appetizing to him. An untrained observer who looked in on him at any other time would simply come to the conclusion that he had resigned himself to imprisonment and merely waited patiently for his sentence to end- a futile wait, as that sentence was for considerably longer than a natural human lifespan.

Such an observer would have been quite wrong. Though the man's body didn't move, his mind was constantly active, roving beyond the confines of his cell as he continually sought the means to free himself. There were no observers, of course, at least none that lived- there hadn't been ever since he had been moved here from Steel City, owing to the fact that this prison possessed superior facilities for dealing with inmates who possessed superhuman powers. Truly, the walls of this cell were far too strong for even his enhanced strength to break and reinforced by an energy field that blunted his powers- blunted, but did not suppress completely. The power of the mind was a notoriously difficult force to counter.

The man had waited months now, and he was willing to wait years if that was what it took for fate to turn his way again, so that he might once more be free and take back what was rightfully his. Such thoughts gave him the strength to endure as his imprisonment became unbearable.

But the man knew that sooner or later, something would slip- it always did. Then he would be free, and the world would tremble at his name once again.

#############

Joey Brown walked with a straight back down the prison hallway, following closely behind his supervisor. It was his first day on the job as a guard, and all in all he was quite proud to have joined the ranks of the select few who worked tirelessly to keep Jump City safe from the scum of the earth. A small voice in the back of his mind pointed out that joining the actual police force- or better yet, becoming a superhero himself- would be even better, but he did his best to ignore it.

Certain members of said scum were glaring at him right now from between the bars of their cells. One overweight young man with wild orange hair caught Joey's notice in particular- he was doing his best evil glower, but somehow succeeded only in reminding the young guard of the main villain in a recently-released action movie he'd seen. In fact, he was pretty sure the inmate's posture was copied directly from a particularly memorable scene…

"Now remember," Joey's supervisor was saying, pulling him back to the present, "don't ever, whatever you do, taunt the supervillains. These nuts aren't worth it, for one thing, and there's not a lot you can do if some of 'em get out, for another. If you do see an escape, call the warden immediately, and he'll get the police and the Titans."

"If we don't actually get to fight the bad guys, then what are we doing here?" Joey was disappointed- he'd been looking forward to impressing his girlfriend (when he got one) with tales of his heroics.

"We're here to remind them of what will happen if they do try to escape. As long as one of us is in view, they know that the Titans are just a phone call away. That keeps them in their places. And we're more than enough to handle the ordinary criminals, anyway."

"So where it really matters, we're just for show," Joey muttered, his dreams of heroism rapidly going down the drain. Looking up, he saw that they were passing by a long, blank hallway that led away from the other cells, with no end in sight.

"Where does that go?" he asked in a hushed voice, curiosity having gotten the better of him.

"There's a cell down there- it was custom-made for some old man they caught a while back. I heard he brainwashed a bunch of kids into thinking they were his students, then went nuts and started replacing parts of his body with machine implants. But the Titans got him in the end." When he saw the look on Joey's face, he added "And don't even think about going down there. Only security robots are allowed."

"Why?"

"Don't know, and it's not my business to ask." The supervisor shot his young trainee a hard look. "And don't ever let me catch you down there. No living personnel are allowed whatsoever, and the warden's _very_ strict about that."

Another hope joined the first in the drain- he'd been hoping to at least get a look at the _interesting_ nutjobs- and a brainwashing cyborg sounded much more interesting than the trio of identical hicks who were making rude gestures from within the cell across the way.

Despite his myriad disappointments, Joey continued to follow the supervisor along as he pointed out the various high-tech security devices used to contain the superpowered criminals, but his mind kept wandering back to the deserted corridor and the mysterious criminal detained therein. He could almost hear a little voice in the back of his head, promising excitement and glory if he just went down that hallway. Finally he could take it no longer.

"Excuse me, sir," he said, "but I really have to use the restroom."

The supervisor shot him a bemused look, then sighed. "All right. But be quick about it."

Joey hurried off in the direction of the men's room, but as soon as the supervisor was out of sight, he turned and sprinted down towards the deserted corridor. Looking around wildly to make sure that no other guards were nearby, he bolted down it.

After what felt like half an hour of walking down the corridor, Joey decided that its allure was obviously overrated. There was nothing down here at all- interesting or otherwise! It was almost enough to make a guy want to get a more exciting job- like serving fries at one of the local fast-food places. Guarding the most dangerous criminals in the city seemed far less interesting than one might think.

But the voice in the back of his head was louder now, and it insisted that if he just kept going, all his hopes would be rewarded. He could think of no real reason why he wanted to, but the voice was so calm and polite and reassuring that he couldn't help himself. Barely conscious of what he was doing, Joey lurched down the corridor, in the direction the voice seemed to be coming from. He had no way of knowing it, but the further he went, the more his eyes began to take on a reddish glow.

Then he saw it- a high-tech looking armored door, surrounded by a shimmering green forcefield and flanked by a pair of massive combat robots. When the machines saw Joey, they whirred to life and raised nasty- and powerful- looking weapon arms.

"HALT AND IDENTIFY YOURSELF!" the robots thundered in unison. "YOU HAVE FIFTEEN SECONDS TO COMPLY!"

Joey was terrified. He wanted to stop, and didn't want at all to find out what those huge weapons actually _did_. But the voice compelled him, and he found that he was powerless to disobey. Performing an acrobatic leap he'd never even known he was capable of, Joey landed directly in front of the door- and the robots, slaves to programming, lowered their weapons and fired. Joey dodged away again as the flashing light shot out, saving himself- but the doors were not so lucky. There was a thunderous explosion, and they collapsed into a twisted heap. He heard an almost pitiful whining sound as some sort of machine died, and then the green energy field failed as well.

A figure stepped out of the ruined door, and Joey knew at once that this was the source of the voice that had called him. He was a tall man, elderly but with a dignified air- until one noticed that half of his face and most of his torso had been replaced with mechanical parts. Then he simply became frightening. Joey hurled himself to the floor and covered his head with his hands, wishing to whatever higher power might be listening that he really _had_ taken that job at the fast-food place.

The old man smiled as the security drones lowered their cannons at him. "I've been in that wretched cell for far too long," he observed, "but they should have known that they could not contain my power forever!"

The robots fired their weapons, but the old man moved with blinding speed. When the beams of energy struck the floor, he was no longer there- rather, he now stood behind the robots, not far from where Joey cowered and wished that this was all a bad dream.

"My turn," the old man said happily, and before the drones could react he raised his hands and sent blazing bolts of crimson lightning coursing into them. The robots collapsed and lay twitching. Then the old man turned to Joey.

"Well, my good man," he said, "My thanks for rescuing me from that vile cell, but unfortunately your services are no longer required. I trust that you'll enjoy prison as much as I didn't. But now, I have other grievances to address. Good-bye." The old man shimmered suddenly, then was surrounded by blazing red light. When it cleared, he was gone.

Joey Brown hit the floor in a dead faint.

#############

When Joey's supervisor found him, he had no memory of anything that had happened since he first heard the voice in his head. Still, he was immediately fired from the prison and heard worrying whispers that there was going to be a hearing.

Then, leaving Joey alone with two experienced guards, the supervisor hurried off to report to the Warden the escape of the infamous prisoner who called himself Brother Blood.


	3. Chapter 2: The Plan

**Chapter 2- The Plan**

The sight that greeted Raven's eyes as she glided into the living room at Titans' Tower was a typical one- or rather, as _typical_ as it ever got when one shared one's home with a cyborg, an alien princess, a green shapeshifter, and the one-time sidekick of the famous Batman. Cyborg and Beast Boy were seated at the gamestation, enjoying their early-morning video-game competition with identical looks of extreme concentration on their faces. Starfire was feeding Silkie something that, to Raven's eyes, did not have the look of food (though the mutant larva was greedily gobbling it up anyway.) Robin was hunched over one of the consoles of the tower computer, his face expressionless. Raven knew that he was scanning the city, searching for any possible sign of trouble.

Gliding into the kitchen area, Raven poured herself a cup of tea and then moved over to the window. Jump City was bright and gleaming in the morning sunlight, and though Raven could not see them, she knew that out there people were going about their daily lives without a care. _This is real_ she told herself firmly. _That dream last night was just a bad memory. _

"Is something the matter?" Robin's voice snapped Raven out of her reverie. She turned to face her friend as he came walking up to stand beside her. "You don't look so good."

"I'm fine, Robin," she said. "Just a bad dream, is all. Nothing to worry about."

"If you say so." Robin didn't sound convinced- the last time Raven had been troubled by bad dreams, after all, it had been a sign of the apocalypse- but he knew better than to press the issue. The team leader turned to the window himself. "I think it's good to look out here this time of day," he said. "To see the city in the sunlight. It reminds us of what we're fighting for- all those people have a right to live their lives, and sometimes we're the only ones who can make sure they can do that."

"I know," Raven said softly, looking down at her half-empty cup of tea.

"I've heard people say that the line between hero and villain is a thin one, and easy to cross- and I've found that out for myself more than once. " Raven knew that Robin was referring to the time he had nearly gotten himself and his team killed while he was trying to gain Slade's trust disguised in a prototype supersuit. "But watching the city in the morning reminds us that we need to place protecting the innocent above punishing the guilty."

Raven didn't speak as she finished her tea. Whether he knew it or not, Robin's words resonated with what she had been thinking about all morning and did little to ease her mind. Trigon's daughter knew better than most how thin that line between good and evil could be, and for her it was thinner than most. Her nature was defined by the tension between her inborn darkness and her upbringing in Azarath; her greatest fear was that someday that upbringing would no longer be enough to control the demon within.

_I am part of you_, a voice seemed to whisper in the back of her mind. _Forever._

The sorceress's reflections were shattered by a thunderous noise from behind her- it sounded like a victorious shout of "Boo-yah!" mixed with desperate sobbing. Cyborg, it seemed, had trounced Beast Boy good.

"Well you just wait 'till the rematch!" the changeling growled as he stalked off to the kitchen, determined to return to the game after a nice, healthy plate of tofu eggs and bacon- his fifth of the morning.

Unfortunately for Beast Boy, he never got the chance to enjoy this latest course of his oversized breakfast. Just as he was dashing back to the gamestation, arms loaded with Tofu, lights around the room began to flash red and a piercing siren wailed. Robin hurried over to the computer and pulled up the message that had just appeared there.

"Titans!" he shouted, "trouble!" Each team member dropped his or her individual activity and hurried over to join him.

"Robin, please," Starfire said when they were all gathered around their leader, "What has happened?"

"It looks like we're about to get a visit from an old friend," Robin growled. "Brother Blood. According to this, he just escaped from prison."

"Aw man," Cyborg said. "You know I hate that guy! So, is it just him, or has he got the HIVE with him again?"

"He just escaped this morning, so it's too early to tell. But even on his own, he's dangerous. The report says he mind-controlled a guard into letting him out and then teleported away- they just found the guy, but they don't know how long it's actually been since the escape." Robin growled and made a fist. " Blood may look like a harmless old man, but his powers make him a force to be reckoned with."

"Believe me, man, I know," Cyborg said. "Especially after he started using _my_ tech!"

Robin nodded. "We don't have any time to lose- we need to catch Blood before he can start recruiting more "students". We don't want to deal with an army. Titans, Go!"

#############

Dr. Light was not happy.

The truth was, this was a fairly common state for him- he was perhaps the greatest scientific mind of this or any age, but his brilliance was continually eclipsed due to the annoying meddling of a gang of teenagers! Precisely how they kept overcoming his mastery of lasers, holograms, and forcefields was a mystery to him (or perhaps not so much of a mystery, but that lead his mind down paths he _really_ didn't want to think about), but the inescapable truth was that a cell at the local prison permanently bore his name- and he spent more time there than at his home.

Today, however, his irritation had nothing to do with those annoying adolescents, and everything to do with his current location. Earlier this morning, he had heard a voice speaking into his head, telling him that if he came to the lobby of a certain downtown skyscraper, he might hear a proposal to his advantage. Intrigued, he had arrived, only to find the building deserted except for a collection of third-rate criminals, all of whom had apparently received the same message- and none of whom knew who had sent it. It was infuriating!

"Hey snotface- watch where you're going!" Dr. Light looked down, and found himself staring into the face of a bald little kid who was wearing some sort of high-tech armor and an arrogant sneer. Dr. Light took an immediate dislike to him, and he sensed that the feeling was mutual.

"Fool!" the scientist thundered, "do you not know who I am? The brilliance of Dr. Light shines on a level beyond your feeble imaginings, and you will show me proper respect." Light concentrated on his suit, and the powerful laser in his chestpiece flared to life. Let the little pipsqueak _dare_ insult him now!

"Yeah, I've heard of you," the kid said in that shrill, annoying voice, seeming completely unimpressed. "They say you can't even pull off a bank robbery without getting your lousy butt kicked. And I've seen better lasers built into inkpens!"

"Who are you who dares question the brilliance of my design?" Now Dr, Light was truly angry. So this little brat thought he could give pointers to the pros, did he?

"Name's Gizmo, barf-brain." A hidden jetpack flared to life, and suddenly Gizmo was hovering at Dr. Light's eye level- and four very sharp looking claws were sprouting from his armor. "You wanna see who's really the genius around here?"

The confrontation was interrupted as a huge man in red armor pushed between them. "Knock it off, wimps," he said. "Adonis was just standing by the door, and the guy who called us all together just got here. Adonis don't know 'bout you, but he wants to see if there's any money in this for me. So be quiet and let him listen, or get crushed!"

Shooting each other looks that clearly said that their battle was not over, Gizmo and Dr. Light turned to face the building's impressive stairwell. An old man stood there, dressed in fine white robes, half his face a mechanical nightmare. Somehow Light thought it looked familiar- where had he seen that tech before? Then the old man raised his hands, and suddenly that didn't matter anymore. All Dr. Light wanted- all he'd ever wanted- was to serve this man however he could. He could see similar devotion in the expressions of his companions, and somehow the fact that all of their eyes were glowing red did not register to him as unusual.

"Hear me, my followers!" the old man called, his voice lordly, commanding. "Today we gather in this place that has been so kindly donated to our cause, and we begin our march towards triumph, and all of our enemies shall fall before out might. Know that I, Brother Blood, shall lead you to victory- and before tomorrow dawns, this city shall be ours!"

Blood lowered his hands, and his eyes- real and mechanical—glowed with a crimson light. "But first, we must deal with certain adolescent pests. Now listen well," he said softly, "and I shall tell you what you must do."


	4. Chapter 3: Running Battle

**Chapter 3- Running Battle **

Raven floated in midair high above Jump City, legs crossed as though she were seated on a solid floor, eyes clenched shut in concentration. Perhaps the most frightening of Brother Blood's powers was his ability to telepathically enslave the minds of anyone who crossed his path- but exploited properly, it could also be his greatest weakness. Whenever the former headmaster of the HIVE called upon his awesome powers, it would shine like a beacon to anyone who had similar powers and bothered to look. And so Robin had set Raven and her supernatural sensitivity to forces of the mind and spirit to the task of locating the infamous supervillain.

She wasn't the only one looking- Robin and Cyborg were patrolling the streets while Starfire and Beast Boy searched the skies. For her part, Raven devoutly hoped they were having better luck than she was. She could sense Blood's presence- the whole city seemed flooded with it, in fact- but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't pin down the source. _I'll give Blood that much credit_, Raven thought. _The man knows what he's doing._

The teenaged sorceress's train of thought was interrupted by the sound of a familiar voice. "Tell me, Raven, please- are you having more success than I in locating the Brother Blood?"

"No, Starfire," Raven said without opening her eyes. "He knows how to hide his presence. Maybe we'd have more luck if you didn't keep flying back here to ask me about it. When I find him, I'll give everyone a call on the communicator."

"Apologies," Starfire said, sounding rather dejected. "I will resume my search. I am hoping that we will both have better luck soon."

At that moment the Titan communicators attached to both girls' costumes began to beep loudly. Opening her eyes and switching to a 'standing' position, Raven pulled her device out and opened it. Robin's face looked up from the small screen.

"What is it, Robin?" Raven asked. "Did you find Blood?"

"No, but I found something else- something you need to see. I'm transmitting coordinates now."

Raven nodded as the numbers flashed up on the communicator screen. "We're on our way."

* * *

The sight that greeted Raven and Starfire's eyes as they landed beside Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy was not at all what they had expected. The boys had been crouched behind an overturned armored car, watching as a tall man in white body-armor over a black unitard shot laser beams at everything that moved- and some things that didn't.

"Dr. Light?" Raven asked incredulously. "You called us down here for _him_? From your tone, I expected someone a _little_ more dangerous."

"Watch him," Robin said softly. Raven sighed and turned back to the illumination-obsessed criminal.

Now that she looked at him, Raven thought that Dr. Light did seem to be acting strangely. Normally the man was next to impossible to shut up, but now he was almost eerily quiet. Rather than the smug grin he usually wore, his face was blank- and while Dr. Light, apart from his unusual weaponry, was a fairly standard money-grubbing criminal, right now he seemed more interested in tearing this section of the city to shreds.

"He does seem… different," Raven finally said.

"Yeah," Beast Boy agreed. "He hasn't made a lame pun about light since I first noticed him ten minutes ago- that's gotta be a record."

"I have some ideas as to why he's acting so strangely, but we'll find out for sure when we take him down. Titans- GO!"

At Robin's shout, Raven was already in the air. Gathering shadows around herself in the shape of the dark bird for which she was named, eyes glowing with barely-contained power, she flew forward and hovered in front of Dr. Light.

"Give it up, Light," she said, her voice echoing slightly. "You know you never win."

Normally Dr. Light collapsed into a fit of hysterics if Raven even looked at him sideways- the result of an unfortunate encounter with her repressed demon side. Now, however, the madman didn't even blink, or seem to register precisely who it was he was fighting at all. Raising his arms, he sent twin laser blasts shooting towards the young superhero.

Raven sighed and wrapped her cloak around herself, vanishing and reappearing several feet behind Dr. Light. As he spun around wildly looking for her, the criminal 'genius' was hit simultaneously by a green gorilla, a cyborg, a kung-fu warrior, and a Tamaranean. All five collapsed in a heap- but then Dr. Light's armor flared brilliantly and the Titans were hurled backwards. As Light staggered to his feet, Raven focused her powers and uprooted a lamppost from its place by the street and sent it hurling at him. It struck Light square in the chest and sent him sprawling.

The blow should have knocked Light out of the fight for good- despite his armor, he was just an ordinary human and could only take so much damage. Now, however, he dragged himself to his feet and stood, staggering slightly and looking like nothing so much as a zombie called from its grave.  
"Dude!" Beast Boy breathed in astonishment. "How'd he do that? Isn't Dr. Light just a wimp with fancy tech?"

"Whatever's affecting his behavior must be so strong he's ignoring pain," Raven said. "If that's the case, he won't stop fighting until he absolutely can't anymore." Reaching out with her thoughts, she found the criminal scientist's brain and attempted to probe it, only to be repulsed by a distinctly familiar presence. Suddenly it seemed this little side-trip wasn't as unconnected to the real business of the day as it had first appeared.

Dr. Light raised his hands again, both of them glowing white-hot as he powered up his beam weapons. Unfortunately for him, before he actually got a chance to fire darkness reared up and wrapped itself around his legs, lifting him upside-down into the sky. As he struggled to free himself, Robin drew a small, flat disk from his belt and hurled it directly at him. It struck Light and exploded, releasing a cloud of grey smoke. When it cleared, Dr. Light was quite thoroughly unconscious.

Raven gestured and the bound criminal floated over to a still-standing streetlight, to which he was bound by even more strands of dark energy. "There," she said. "That should hold him until the police get here."

"Does anyone have any thoughts as to why Dr. Light was acting so contrary to his usual character?" Starfire asked.

"My theory? Brother Blood." Cyborg's tone was dark- he and Blood didn't quite reach the kind of obsessive enmity Robin and Slade had attained, but they had had a long, unpleasant history nonetheless, and Raven, agreeing with his assessment of the situation, had no desire to get in the middle of their rematch.

Before the Titans could further discuss the matter, something a few miles away exploded with a particularly thunderous bang. In a city with more than its fair share of superpowered menaces, this was not a good sign. The Titans didn't even need to wait for Robin's signal to move out.

* * *

With a final sparking hiss Gizmo's jetpack gave out, sending the young criminal scientist spiraling to the ground below.

Raven sighed as she caught Gizmo and bound him with strands of shadow. It had been eight hours- and as many bad guys- since their encounter with Dr. Light that morning, and it was starting to get dark. Personally Raven was rather fond of the night, but after a full day of taking down one supervillain after another- each exhibiting the same emotionless detachment as Dr. Light- she was quite ready to crawl into her bed and stay there for a week.

To top it off, she hadn't been able to meditate since the morning, and combining that with rampant exhaustion, she could feel certain aspects of her mind acting up. They hadn't slipped the leash yet, nor were they particularly close to it, but it was still rather riskier than Raven would have preferred, particularly if their ultimate adversary turned out to be the person both she and Cyborg suspected.

She was jerked from her reflections as something beeping fell from Gizmo's backpack and landed on the ground in front of the team- something that resembled one of the team communicators, except for the fact that it was hexagon shaped and marked with a large H.

"A HIVE communicator," Robin said. He bent to pick it up. "Let's see who's calling."

When Robin flipped the communicator open, a familiar face appeared on its display screen- an old man with a mechanical eye and metal rimming his cheek and jawbone. "Brother Blood," Robin whispered. "We suspected you were behind this- you never were one for subtlety."

"Who needs subtlety when you have power? In any event, good evening, Titans," Blood said , his tone friendly but with an edge of menace. "I trust you all have been enjoying the little entertainment I devised for you today? It really was quite entertaining to watch you all running from one crisis to the next with no time in between! But you handled yourselves quite well, I must admit. Bravo!"

"What are you planning?" Robin asked, gritting his teeth at the mockery.

"You are a direct young man, Robin- a quality I feel is all too rare in today's youth. But no matter. I was just about to unveil my grandest accomplishment- and an audience never hurt." Blood's face pulled back from the communicator, showing the room behind him- which was dominated by a massive, pulsing, sparkling device. It was amazing he'd built the whole thing in one day, though it had the look of something that had been in the planning stages long before that.

"Magnificent, isn't it?" Blood asked. "By midnight tonight this machine will be operational- and it will enhance my powers to such a degree that I will be able to control every mind in the city! I doubt any magic robots will come out of thin air to save you all this time, Titans. But, I really must be going. This device requires much attention. Ta-ta,!" The communicator went dark.

"Cyborg," Robin whispered, "Can you trace that call?"

"I can if you let me see the device," Cyborg replied, "But doesn't this seem a little fishy to you- a little obvious? Remember Slade and the chronotron detonator? That's what this feels like to me. I mean, I hate Blood as much as the next guy, but I know him best too, and this smells like a trap."

"I know, but we can't take the risk, especially since he might have moved by tomorrow, even if it is a fake threat. Trace the call- then we can find him and end this tonight."

"All right, man- I'm on it." Cyborg took the communicator and set to work. Watching him, Raven shook her head. _We're all exhausted_. _Even if we find Blood, in this state, are we a match for him? Are we just doing what he wants?_


	5. Chapter 4: The Trap

**Chapter 4- The Trap**

Brother Blood chuckled softly to himself as he deactivated the hologram projector he had used to create the illusion of a complex power-enhancing machine. Foolish Titans! As if such a device could be assembled in the space of the day and a half since he had freed himself from that wretched prison cell! But, as always, the stupidity of others served Brother Blood's purposes.

The former headmaster of the HIVE turned to face those that shared the room with him and now silently waited his commands. He regarded them for a few moments, and then nodded. Yes, they would serve. They were crude, but subtlety was not required for them to fill the roles assigned to them.

Blood paced back and forth before the line of his minions, and then, softly he began to speak. Talking to these mind-controlled puppets was rather like talking to himself, he thought, but that was no barrier to him. Blood had always believed that he himself was the only person he could go to for intelligent conversation. Who else would stand any chance of truly grasping his thoughts?

"They are coming for me now. I knew that they would- indeed I planned it to be so. They believe that they have defeated all of my minions, and now all they must do is destroy my machine and then return me to my wretched little cell. But they are fools. All they accomplished today was to exhaust themselves, while I have power to spare.

"I knew that I was special from a young age, you know. I could move things without touching them… control animals without training them… hurt people who made me angry. Quickly I learned that no one else could do these things. That was when I realized that I had been born superior to other men- no, not only superior, but as a demigod among lesser mortals! Why one such as I bow to the petty rules of society, I thought. I should make my own destiny!

"As a young man, I learned that I was not alone- there were others who were born with powers, or had acquired them from some other source. But my power was superior, for could I not enter any of their minds and make them my puppets? Indeed I saw that I, and I alone, was fit to be master of mankind.

"I waited, and plotted, for many years, preparing my ascension. Finally I used my abilities to install myself as head of the HIVE, a training center for young supermercenaries. I could use the students as my own army. Victory seemed at hand.

"Then He came- the one person I had ever met whom I could not control. All of you know him, I believe- I first met him as Stone, though he prefers the name Cyborg. He infiltrated my school and then used my greatest weapon against me. For the first time in my life, I was forced to flee. For this Cyborg possessed a power new to me- a power born of the fact that he was at once man and machine. I knew then that this power should be MINE!"

Blood's voice rose to a shriek and he slammed his fist down on his desk, sending crimson sparks shooting across it. Breathing heavily, he slowly managed to master himself, and then resumed his speech. "Finally I managed to steal his blueprints, and used them to enhance my natural powers with the one force they could not defeat. I should have been invincible, but somehow- even I do not fully understand what happened that night- he turned my power against me. I was left to rot in prison like a common criminal.

"But now I am free again, and this time I have planned well. Cyborg and his friends- the so called Titans- will come to me weak and exhausted, and before the night is done they will submit to me of their own free will."

Brother Blood smiled for a moment at the thought, and he turned away from his pawns to gaze out of the window as the sun set. He stood there for some time, motionless, until he felt a presence in his mind- a presence that was unmistakable. He drew the hologram projector out of his robes again and activated it.

"Now hide yourselves, my warriors," he whispered, scenting victory. "They are here."

* * *

The Titans stood at the base of a skyscraper- a great tower of steel and dark glass that dominated the skyline of this part of Jump City. Raven had seen the building many times before, had always written it off as a rather imposing collection of offices. Now, though, it housed a hidden evil.

"You're sure this is the place?" Robin asked.

Cyborg nodded. "Signal's coming strong from the top floors. Blood's got himself a penthouse suite."

"He won't be up there for long," Robin said. "We're here to bring him down."

Beast Boy yawned loudly. "I hope we get him fast- I totally don't do well on less than twenty hours of sleep!"

Raven shot him a dirty look, though for once she found herself agreeing with the general sentiment.

Robin drew a birdirang from his belt and stalked through the revolving door. Starfire followed immediately behind with glowing hands and eyes. Next came Raven and Beast Boy, powers also at the ready, and then Cyborg with sonic cannon activated.

The lobby appeared to be empty at first- but then Raven noticed the receptionist sitting at the main desk, so still she might be mistaken for a mannequin. As the Titans approached her, she suddenly spoke in a flat, mechanical voice.

"You are expected, Titans. The Headmaster is waiting for you in the office on the top floor."

"Mind controlled," Cyborg said softly, stepping forward and waving a hand in front of her blank eyes. "Definitely Blood's work."

Robin motioned for the team to follow him towards the elevator located on the side of the lobby. The Titans filed inside, and Beast Boy pushed the button for the top floor. The elevator rumbled and began to rise.

Raven did not know why, but she could not shake the feeling of impending doom that seemed to fill the air. Blood was a dangerous villain, but even Slade hadn't generated this level of palpable menace. Perhaps it was a side-effect of the Headmaster's own formidable mental powers, but even that couldn't explain the sensation completely. The only thing she'd ever felt like it before was… no, that's not it, don't think that way!

In the back of her mind, she felt her other self waiting.

The elevator suddenly beeped loudly, and as the doors opened the Titans stepped out into a large office that seemed to take up the entire floor. The walls were solid glass- one giant widow looking out over the city as night fell. The room was sparsely appointed- the only furniture was a plain wooden desk and a high-backed office chair turned away from them.

"So- where is he?" Beast Boy asked.

Then laughter filled the room, amused and evil. The desk chair slowly swiveled around, revealing the old cyborg in the immaculate white robes who sat there, the lights of the city reflecting off the crimson armor on his face and arms- Brother Blood himself. As he faced the Titans he stopped laughing and steepled his fingers over the desk.

"Hello, Titans," he said conversationally. "So good of you to come. Now I trust you didn't have any difficulties along the way?"

"Where's the device, Blood?" Robin asked, brandishing his birdarang.

Brother Blood laughed again. "Don't tell me you actually believed that one! Clearly, dear boy, the Batman didn't train you nearly as well as he'd hoped if you stumbled into a trap this obvious!"

Cyborg pushed past Robin and faced his old nemesis. "I don't care whether that device is real or not. You're going back where you belong- I think you've still got a few life sentences left to serve."

Blood smiled patronizingly. "Very clever, Cyborg, but I don't think prison agreed with me." His organic eye began to glow a menacing red to match its mechanical twin. "Let's see if you can force me."

Without another word Cyborg raised his sonic cannon and let loose a blast at full power. A wave of compressed sound shot towards Blood- but then he waved a hand dismissively and sent the blast shooting though the window.

"Is that the best you can do? Really, I am disappointed!" Blood's smile stretched impossibly wide, and malice glinted in his eyes. "My turn!"

Then the old man's entire body blazed with crimson fire. With an inhuman roar Brother Blood launched himself across the desk and slammed into Cyborg, knocking him clear across the room. As the half-robot struggled to his feet Blood raised both hands and send blasts of red energy striking towards the other Titans.

Raven was ready. As Blood's blast shot towards her she raised her own hands and called forth a shield of dark energy. The red bolt impacted on the shield and ricocheted, striking the desk and knocking it on its side. Blood stumbled and the blasts faded.

The Titans raised their individual weapons and advanced on Blood, but the former Headmaster simply smiled and nodded. Suddenly Raven felt her sense of danger spiking, but before she could react she was seized from behind by arms that were crushingly strong- and saw that her friends suffered the same fate. Cinderblock, Plasmus, Mammoth, Steamroller, Adonis- villains and monsters with tremendous strength- emerged from where they had been hidden by holograms and seized each of the young heroes in their unbreakable grip.

_How could this happen?_ Raven thought angrily. _We're smarter than this- unless that's the reason for Blood sending his minions to play games with us all day. Of course. He was making sure we'd be at our weakest and sloppiest when we finally got to him, and now we're paying for it. _

Blood smirked. "And now, Titans, you are mine. It was almost pathetically easy- but then, you never were all that impressive. Soon my victory shall be complete, and you all shall have the honor of being a part of it! But for now, you look so tired. SLEEP!"

Raven felt the force of Blood's compulsion strike her mind, but she no longer had the strength to resist. She slept.


	6. Chapter 5: Battle Not With Monsters

**Chapter 5- Battle Not With Monsters…**

_Raven's eyes burned with unholy fire as Dr. Light suffered unspeakable tortures at her hands… the dragon Malchior whispered sweet nothings into her ear as he manipulated her into freeing him… she was caught, helpless in Slade's deathless grasp as the city burned beneath her… Trigon's terrible, monstrous laughter rang over the devastation of Azarath… she felt her body and soul scorched away by demon's fire as her father forced his way into this dimension… _

"_No," Raven whispered fiercely, "I faced these things before and I beat them! You can't defeat me with the past!" _

_Her world went dark, and then her other self appeared before her, eyes glinting with malicious amusement. "Maybe not," it whispered, "but then- who knows what the future might bring?" _

_Then the demon and its darkness began to break apart, and Raven could feel herself waking up…_

* * *

Raven found herself sitting in a office chair, her hands and feet bound by rings of energy. She tried to move slightly, and then gasped as waves of pain shot through her. After it passed, she sat completely still and focused her thoughts on the device that held her. She could break it- maybe- with enough time, but time was something she doubted Brother Blood would give her.

Looking around, Raven saw that her friends were also bound by similar devices, and were all groaning as they came to. The brutes that Blood has used to do his bidding were gone- dismissed to wait for new orders, perhaps. Blood himself was seated behind his desk- which looked rather worse for the wear- once again, the look on his face one of smug triumph.

"You're all awake?" he asked. "Good. I hope you all had a wonderful little nap- though I doubt it did much to help you recover from your long day. That would rather defeat the point of my running you all ragged until your resistance was lowest, wouldn't it? And now you finally get to learn why I brought you all here.

"You see, Titans, it occurs to me that although I possess great power of my own, I am not invincible. Therefore, if I am to attain all that I truly desire, I require the services of those who- like yourselves- possess different powers that compensate for my own weaknesses."

"You honestly think we're gonna work for you?" Cyborg asked incredulously. "You're crazier than I thought- and that takes some doing."

"DO NOT INTERRUPT ME!" Blood roared, his eyes flashing dangerously. "As I was saying," he continued in a much calmer tone, "I require your services. And I possess the power to compel said service whether you wish it or not." His eyes began to burn crimson and he lifted one hand to show similarly-colored lightning playing about it.

"Yeah- except for one little glitch. You can't control me, remember? Never could. And I was able to take you down alone the last time you tried something like this." Cyborg's glare matched Blood's for sheer intensity. "Looks like the Headmaster still hasn't learned his lesson."

Blood chuckled. "Ah yes, I remember well. Your victory was a fluke that I intend to rectify tonight. I understand now that it was not your mechanical mind but your spirit that resisted me, but spirit can be broken- and broken it shall be. You see, those rings that bind you were created by my old student Gizmo, and for all his faults the boy is perhaps the greatest technical mind alive. In addition to containing you, they can induce intense pain whenever I desire. So you see, Cyborg- you will submit yourself to me willingly, or I will torture your friends until their poor minds snap. Am I clear?"

"You are very clear," a soft voice said, "but you will _not_ succeed!" As she spoke, Starfire gave a great heave and tore one of her arms free from the containment ring. Eyes glowing a brilliant green, she launched a starbolt at Blood.

The former headmaster's quick reflexes saved him- barely. He ducked aside faster than the eye could follow, but the starbolt still grazed his arm before striking the desk. It exploded with shocking force and light.

"YOU…WILL…NOT…ATTACK…ME…AGAIN!" Blood was nearly incoherent with rage. Lunging forward, he caught Starfire's arm and pinned it back against the chair, then lowered his face until it was inches from her own stared into her eyes. Red light flared about them, and they both stood motionless for an instant, then Blood withdrew, a satisfied smile playing about his lips. Starfire now sat completely still and expressionless, her eyes glowing a slight crimson.

"Leave her alone!" Robin shouted, struggling against his bonds- and gaining himself nothing but an intense shock in the process. Beast Boy and Cyborg were similarly ineffective. Raven focused herself and managed to control her emotional response. Hot-headedness never solved anything. She needed to find a weakness in this device and exploit it.

Blood paused a moment to study Starfire, and when he was content that she was completely under his control his smile broadened. "Next," he said cheerfully, and moved on to Robin, then Beast Boy. The process was nearly the same- after some initial resistance, they succumbed.

He turned to Raven. "Your turn, my dear," he said softly, and cupped her chin in one metal hand. Raven was repulsed, but kept her feelings down. She needed all her power under control to fight Blood.

The Headmaster's eyes glowed red, and Raven felt his power boring into her mind. Passively she held back, waiting until he thought he had his fangs sunk deep in her- and then she slammed her mind shut like a trap, catching the stunned Blood inside.

* * *

Raven and Brother Blood stood facing each other on a barren rock that hovered in a void. There was no wind, but both of their robes rustled slightly. Blood looked now like he had the first time Raven had seen him- a fully human old man in white. This was his mental image of himself, and the cybernetics hadn't changed it.

Above them a flock of black birds circled. Waiting.

"What is this place?" Blood whispered. For the first time, there was an undercurrent of uncertainty in his voice.

"My mind," Raven replied. "You wanted to come here. Now you're trapped. The only way out is to defeat me, and we're on my home ground." Dark energy began to play around her hands as she held them by her sides. "Care to try me?"

"Fool!" Blood hissed. "I am more powerful than you know. I have brought far stronger minds than yours to their knees. Even here you have no hope of defeating me!"

"Power?" Raven had to suppress a laugh. "I know power better than you do, little man. I was born heir to a power you can't even imagine- and I have to control myself every second to keep from destroying everything around me. You may have power, but sooner or later you'll find out the truth- that power isn't all its made out to be. It'll eat you up. Believe me- I know."

"You will suffer for your insolence!" Blood raised his hands, and a beam of red light lanced from them. Raven raised her own hands in response, and darkness deeper than the void between the stars shot forth, caught the red light and held it. They pushed against each other for what felt like an eternity, the red power struggling against the black, neither able to win. Strain showed on both combatants faces.

But slowly Brother Blood pushed Raven back. She was tired, weak, unable to access her full strength without endangering herself and everything around her. And Blood had long trained his mind to a single purpose- the absolute domination of others. Raven fought valiantly, but she realized that ultimately Blood must win.

A look of triumph crossed the headmaster's face, and Raven was driven to her knees. But she still fought- she had to fight, had to…

She felt her consciousness splinter, and suddenly there was not one Raven there but a dozen, each wearing a different colored cloak, each corresponding to a different part of Raven's identity. The original slumped to the ground, drained.

"What is this?" Blood asked. "What is happening here? I demand an explanation!"

None of the Ravens answered- they simply stood there as though waiting for something they expected to occur. Blood stared at them in bewilderment, and then suddenly from behind him a laugh echoed, soft and menacing, and the darkness itself spoke. "Sorry, old man," it said in a tone that betrayed no emotion but a kind of cruel satisfaction, "but you won't be getting one. Your time is over. _My_ time has come."

Blood spun, looking for the speaker- but she appeared behind him, her red cloak whipping, four red eyes burning. Reaching out a slender hand, the demon-Raven seized Blood by the shoulder. She was born of hate and rage and evil power- and Brother Blood had all these things to spare.

Blood collapsed, screaming in unspeakable agony as the demon drained his life energy, and then he vanished. But the demon towered over where he had stood, her power enhanced beyond anything she had known before. The human side of Raven was beaten; it was time for Trigon's daughter to take control.

The other shards of Raven's mind began to spin around the demon, faster and faster until they were a blur- and then the blur merged into her. She grew, towering over her fallen counterpart, her cloak darkening from red to purest black.

"No," Raven whispered as she lay on the ground, trying futilely to reach out with her spent power and reassert control. The demon only laughed.

"Yes," she whispered. "At last, I have triumphed! I am Raven now- and you are nothing more than a lost soul."

The mindscape gave a final, terrible shudder, and then darkness swallowed it, deeper than an overcast night sky.

* * *

Brother Blood was thrust back into his body with a force that sent him reeling. He lay panting on the floor for a moment, then pulled himself up slightly by the side of his shattered desk. This was not possible! He was Brother Blood, the most powerful psychic in the world, but within the girl's mind he had felt a power that dwarfed his own in age and majesty.

Looking up he saw that the force that had expelled him from Raven's mind had knocked the Titans' chairs across the room, and that each of the team appeared to have been knocked out. Except for one. She towered over him now like a shadow from the underworld, with hellfire for eyes.

Blood had never considered himself a coward, but now he hurled himself on the floor before this foe and raised a pleading look to her eyes. "Mercy…" he croaked, all his arrogance and pride and power forgotten. His only desire was to save himself from this terrible creature he had inadvertently unleashed on the world.

"Mercy?" she whispered in a voice colder than an arctic wind. "I have _none._" With a gesture she drew the darkness more thickly about her, and then she struck.

Everything Brother Blood knew went black.


	7. Chapter 6: Lest You Become a Monster

**Chapter 6-… Lest You Become a Monster**

Robin came awake slowly and painfully. He remembered Blood's red eyes boring into his mind, and then a feeling of blissful emptiness as the power-mad psychic had taken total control. The next thing he remembered was a stabbing pain that shocked through his entire being- and now he was lying on the floor with someone shaking him.

"Robin, Robin- are you all right?" a familiar voice asked.

"I think so, Starfire," Robin groaned and pulled himself up. He was still in Brother Blood's appropriated penthouse office, but something had clearly happened to the place while he'd been out. All the lights had gone dark, and shadows clung thick about the windows- so thick that it was now impossible to see outside. A cold chill hung in the air. Starfire and Beast Boy were both hovering anxiously around their friend and leader, but Cyborg was examining something lying on the ground.

"Cyborg," Robin asked as he walked over, "What are you looking at?"

Cyborg shook his head and pulled back, and Robin saw Brother Blood himself lying immobile on the floor, legs curled tightly to his chest and arms wrapped around them, mismatched eyes wide open. The criminal mastermind seemed to be still alive- he was breathing, at any rate- but his gaze was completely vacant. And the expression stamped on his face could only be described as sheer, raving terror. Every so often, his body gave a shuddering tremble.

"What did this to him?" Robin asked, appalled.

"No idea," Cyborg said. "I just remember him trying to take over Raven, and then something knocked me out. When I woke up, those trap chairs of his had all been deactivated and the psycho himself was lyin' over here with his brain fried. I've tried waking him up every way I know how, even hit him a few times- gotta admit that felt good- but nothing. Whoever did this to him knew what they were doing."

Robin's eyes narrowed as he considered the implications of that statement. An idea was forming in the back of his mind as to precisely what had happened in this room, and he didn't like it one bit. "You say the last thing you saw before blacking out was Blood using his powers on raven? Where is she, anyway?"

"Here."

All the Titans turned to face the source of the voice, which was at once familiar and horribly changed. A figure near the window, so dark that they had taken it to be part of the strange shadow, turned slowly around, revealing itself to be a girl wrapped in a cloak the color of a midnight sky. Slowly, deliberately, she reached up and cast back her hood- and the other Titans recoiled in horror.

It was plainly Raven, but she some terrible transformation seemed to have happened to her. Her once pale skin had darkened to a fiery red, while her dark blue hair had been drained of all color. A second pair of eyes had appeared on her forehead, and all four glowed with an unholy light. As she lowered her hands back to her sides, Robin could clearly see that they were clawed.

Apart from height and gender, she had become a perfect replica of her father.

"Raven," Robin finally whispered, "What happened to you?"

"I am reborn, Robin," she replied, "You cannot imagine it. All my life my soul has been torn between my father and mother, demon and human- or, as Azar described it, evil and good. But now I see that these distinctions are meaningless. Blood wanted to control my mind, but in the end all he did was show me the truth- the only thing in this world that matters is power. When I understood that, I became complete- and now all of my enemies shall tremble."

"Come on, Raven, this is a joke, right?" Beast Boy asked, a note of desperation in his voice. "Well, knock it off. Cause it's not funny."

Raven turned slowly to regard him, her eyes blazing. "You," she hissed, hate dripping from her voice. "Of course you would think this a joke. You are incapable of taking anything seriously. But this, I assure you, is real."

Robin stepped forward and reached out to put a hand on Raven's shoulder. "Listen to me, Raven. I know Blood hurt you, but you can't give in to this part of yourself just because it gives you more power. We're your friends, Raven. Let us help you!"

For a moment the intensity in Raven's eyes seemed to waver- but then they snapped back to the cold harshness that had dominated them. She raised her hand and from it shot a blast of darkness highlighted with red. It stuck Robin in the chest and sent him flying across the room, to land in a crumpled heap. He slowly pulled himself up, twitching as dark energy bolts danced along his limbs.

"I do not require your help, mortal," Raven snarled.

"All right, Raven," Cyborg growled, "We tried to talk sense into you the nice way, but it looks like that's not gonna work. Now its time for the hard way!" He raised his sonic cannon and fired a powerful blast. Raven raised both her hands and projected a ray of dark energy that met the soundwave in midair. They strove against each other for a moment, but finally the sonic cannon gave out. It sputtered for a moment and then exploded. Cyborg was knocked to the floor, and stared disbelievingly at his ruined arm.

"Man," was all he managed to say in a stunned voice.

Starfire lifted into the air, eyes glowing and starbolts forming around her hands. "Raven, I have no wish to fight you," she said sadly, "But by hurting our friends you leave me no choice." She leveld one starbolt directly at the other girl. "Forgive me."

"I do not forgive," Raven said and unleashed another blast of dark energy. But Starfire simply flew up above it and then dove on Raven. There was no time for the sorceress to react. Before she could cast another spell, she found herself pinned against the floor by a superhumanly strong alien warrior.

"Please, Raven," Starfire said, "let us help you!"

"I told you that I _do not require_ _help_!" Raven hissed, and suddenly her whole body was suffused with crackling power. Starfire screamed as this power coursed into her own form, then slowly collapsed to the ground. She lay there, still twitching.

Raven slowly pulled herself to her feet and stared at the unmoving forms of her friends. "Truly I had no desire to harm you," she whispered, "But there are things I must accomplish that you would not like, and I will not allow you to interfere. Maybe someday you'll see things my way."

"If you don't want to hurt us, then don't!" Raven whipped around and saw the source of the uncharacteristically serious voice- Beast Boy. He was standing there staring at her, the look in his eyes torn between rage and sadness. Raven had not seen it, but he had worn this look once before- when he discovered that Terra was Slade's apprentice.

"You understand nothing. Do not pretend that you do." Raven had no time for the inane babblings of this green pest.

"Oh yeah?" Beast Boy asked, advancing. "I think I do. I knew Terra, knew her better than anyone. I saw what Slade did to her, the things he made her do, and how in the end she nearly killed herself trying to make up for it! And now she doesn't even want to remember the things she did, because she just can't stand it anymore. Is that what you want, Raven? Is it?"

Raven scowled. "You show your ignorance, Beast Boy. Terra was a human who was consumed by the power she couldn't control. I know exactly what I am doing, and I am an entirely different order of being."

"A half-demon consumed by power you can't control? Doesn't sound so different to me. Remember what you told me after I turned into that monster? You said we all have monsters inside us, and we need to know how to let them out- and when to keep them in."

"I was a fool then. I know better now."

Beast Boy sighed. "I had to try," he muttered to himself- and then seemed to explode outwards. The building beneath groaned under a weight it had never been meant to support- the weight of a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Even Raven had to take a step back when coming face to face with one of the mightiest predators ever to walk the earth. Beat Boy roared and took a lumbering step forward, but his chosen form was too large to maneuver effectively in the enclosed space. Raven closed her eyes and concentrated- a careful observer might have noted the human-shaped shadow that shot from her body and into the giant dinosaur's. Beast Boy stumbled for a moment, then fell to the floor with a resounding crash. When the dust cleared, he was in his own form and thoroughly unconscious. Rising from the comatose form, the soul-self shot back towards her physical form and merged back into it.

Raven stepped into the center of the room and looked around at the comatose forms of her teammates. "Again, I truly do not desire this," she said, "but it seems that you leave me no choice." She raised her hands again, and they began to crackle with red energy. "Good-bye, my friends."

The red bolts lanced towards the Titans- and stopped. Raven doubled over as though she were in terrible pain, her eyes held tightly shut. When she opened them again one pair had vanished, and they had returned to their natural violet shade, though no other aspect of her appearance changed.

The Titans were groaning and pulling themselves into seated position- and they stared in horrified fascination as Raven seemed to do battle with herself. Finally she looked up at them and spoke.

"Get out of here! Now!" she gasped out. "I can't keep control for very long, but listen to me- you have to go."

Robin pulled himself up and took a shaky step towards her. "Raven, fight it. We can help you- I promise!"

"You can't… save me now," she gasped. "Didn't you hear me? I said GO! Get out of here while there's still time!"

A sudden shadow filled the room. When it cleared, the team- along with the comatose form of Brother Blood- was gone.

Raven tottered for a moment gasping out a pain-filled breath, and then collapsed face forward on the floor.


	8. Chapter 7: Aftermath

**Chapter 7- Aftermath**

Robin had failed.

The leader of the Teen Titans lay on his bed and tried to sleep. He needed to sleep- oh how he needed it- but he couldn't. His mind kept returning to the events of the day- Blood's escape, the running battle with his pawns, the final confrontation atop the skyscraper… and Raven, giving in to her dark side at last. After she had forced them out of the building by her magic, the team had found themselves lying on the pavement, a still-comatose Brother Blood at their side. They had dropped Blood off with the police, and then, wearily returned home to get some much needed rest. But none of them was really sleeping. How could they? Each of them kept going over dark thoughts in their heads. In Robin's case, his mind kept coming back to one thing.

He had failed.

He was the leader of the Titans. He was Raven's friend. He had a responsibility to her and to the city. And he had failed by allowing her to become a creature more dangerous than almost anything they had ever faced. Logically he knew that there was nothing he could have done, having been unconscious at the time, but he refused to accept that. Robin was supposed to be a hero, a protector of all things good- there was even an odd little extra-dimensional creature that practically worshipped him out there, for goodness's sake- but all he felt was like a fool.

Robin had failed.

* * *

Starfire hadn't always been Raven's friend. When the two girls had first met, in fact, they had felt something strongly approaching mutual dislike- their personalities were just too opposite for any sort of connection, it seemed. Certainly Starfire, who came from a highly emotional species, found Raven's withdrawn demeanor and sarcastic wit to be cold and a little bid mean. Later they learned to tolerate each other, but it seemed unlikely to go beyond that.

Then came the time they were trapped in each other's bodies.

For just a few hours, Starfire had learned what Raven had to live with every day, the roiling chaos in her mind that it took all of her will to hold back. Before that experience, Starfire had disliked Raven- she came away from it with a great deal of admiration for the sorceress who had gone through that her whole life and still managed to keep her sanity intact. Now that chaos had consumed her at last.

But Starfire knew it wasn't over, not yet. She had been barely conscious, but she had seen the Raven she knew take back control of her body from the demon and use her powers to send her friends away before something unspeakable happened. Her friend was still inside the monster, and she needed help. The Tamaranean princess was a warrior, and a warrior _never_ abandoned a friend in need.

But Starfire just didn't know how.

* * *

Of all the Teen Titans, Cyborg had probably been the one who was least close to Raven. He liked her quite a bit- Raven was smart and brave, and watching her and Beast Boy go at it was often more entertaining than anything on TV, and that was saying something- but the two of them had never had the same sort of connection she had with the other Titans.

But she was still a friend, and an integral part of the team. She was always there to keep the team from getting too off-task, and was always ready with a choice bit of snark when someone was about to do something truly stupid. It could be annoying at the time, yeah, but when it came down to it, without Raven the Teen Titans would have ground to halt- or been ground up by the latest nasty to come down the pipe- a long time ago. And she was the only person on the team who could consistently give Cyborg's computer-enhanced chess skills a run for their money.

Now she was gone, and to Cyborg, the Teen Titans felt fundamentally incomplete.

* * *

There were few things in life that Beast Boy took seriously.

From his point of view, the world would be a much better place if everyone just recognized that the whole thing was quite silly- because really, would Slade be the monster he was if the guy just managed to laugh every now and then, and would it really hurt Mento to smile? Unfortunately, there just wasn't enough comedy going around these days. Beast Boy did his best to pick up the slack. People called him immature and silly, and he guessed that a lot of the time he kinda was. But all in all, on the rare occasion he stopped to think about these things, he thought fun was worth a few nasty names.

But tonight he remembered the madness in Raven's eyes, the dark powers she unleashed at her friends without remorse. It made him think back to another girl, months ago, who had also been corrupted and then destroyed by her uncontrollable powers. Terra, now Raven- why was it that every girl in his life had a psychotic episode sooner or later? At least Starfire was sane- for now… But the joke wasn't very funny. Beast Boy's heart just wasn't in it.

There were few things in life that Beast Boy took seriously. A friend turning against their team was one of them.

* * *

Raven pulled herself to her feet and found herself alone in the office that had been- until recently- Brother Blood's headquarters. She looked down at her hands as she stood, and saw that they were still fiery red. That was good. Her rebellious human half hadn't done permanent damage when it temporarily seized control.

Raven began to pace around the room, ordering her thoughts now that she was alone, forming her plans. For her whole life she had been controlled, a pawn. Her father- curse his name!- had spawned her to be his tool. Azar had trained her, trying to make Raven into her tool to defeat Trigon. And the Titans, for all their talk of friendship, had used her too. She was the most powerful member of the team- they all knew it- and how often would they have succeeded without her there to help them? Trigon, Azar, the team- they all made her sick!

A surge of white-hot rage shot through her and she doubled over, clutching her head, as it threatened to burst out. No, calm, she needed calm. Azar had taught her that much, whatever the prophetess's motivation. Calm, control- that kept her powers in hand, kept her mind clear to think. And she needed to think. A desire for vengeance against all who had wronged her burned in her soul, but accomplishing it would not be easy. Her father's body may have been destroyed during his attempted conquest of this dimension, but since when was something like that a meaningful inconvenience to a demon? She knew in her heart that he still live, and was a monster of unimaginable power, even trapped in his own domain. Azar was dead. And the Titans- Raven felt a strange reluctance to do them lasting harm. It was that cursed human half again, the weak and sentimental heritage of her mother! No, calm, control. She needed a plan- surely there was a spell that would help he bring her enemies to their knees? She would find it, and then she would make them all pay.

Trigon's daughter had work to do.


	9. Chapter 8: In the Dark

**Chapter 8- In the Dark**

The moonlight shone faintly through the skylight and into the still, quiet corridors of the Jump City Museum of History, glittering off of glass cases housing rare and unusual artifacts. These were a part of a touring exhibit on magic, showcasing ancient artifacts and devices that were believed to possess great supernatural power. So far, the exhibit had been a massive hit.

The stillness was broken with an alarming suddenness. Flames sprung from the center of the floor, requiring no fuel and casting no smoke. For a moment they writhed there formlessly, before shaping themselves into a vaguely humanoid figure that hovered a few inches above the ground. The demon- for that, of course, was what the flaming creature was- looked about the room with predatory intensity, then glided off in search of the prize it had been ordered to bring in.

At last, after scouring the display cases one by one, the demon found what it sought. The book was old, older than the pyramids, though the researchers mistakenly believed it to be a Roman artifact. It was bound in black leather, the silver letters on its cover not those of any known alphabet- any human alphabet. Further study was impossible, for the more intently that untrained eyes focused on those letters, the more they seemed to writhe and twist maddeningly.

It was an evil book, one of the few works of literature that could truly be called such, the creation of an evil man, who made deals with demons for brief power, but who lost his soul in the bargain. But he left behind this legacy- the greatest tome of dark magic ever produced by mortal hands. Now the one who commanded the loyalty of the fire demon required its power.

The demon thief raised one burning hand and lightly brushed the glass display case. It glowed for an instant and then began to melt, pooling in red-hot globs around the dark spellbook. But the book did not burn. Not even the fires of the Underworld could have harmed it. The demon reached down and lifted the prize reverently in its hands.

_She will be pleased_, it thought. _Oh yes, she will be pleased._

Then, with a flash of hellfire, both demon and book were gone.

* * *

"Another robbery," Robin said, looking up from the computer screen. "The same as the others. No security systems were tripped, scorch marks were found on the floor and walls, and the stolen object is supposed to be magical."

"Raven," Cyborg whispered. "It's gotta be."

It had been a week since the disastrous confrontation with Brother Blood. Raven had not returned to the Tower, or made any attempt to contact her friends; she seemed to have barricaded herself in Blood's captured skyscraper. A cloud of darkness still hung around the building, even at noon, and no one had been able to get in or out. The police had established a perimeter to make certain that the strange phenomenon would not endanger the city, but there was little they could do. Demon-magic was rather outside the jurisdiction of even the Jump City police department.

But on the first night after the battle, the robberies had begun. Museums, bank vaults, private collections- anything that might contain objects of magical power. All the thefts were successful- the being responsible could apparently slip by security undetected, leaving only scorch-marks as the sign of its passage. One camera, though, had managed to get a quick shot of the thief- like a hunchbacked, long-armed man formed of flame. Robin knew the creature. He had fought its kind before, when Trigon had tried to bring about the apocalypse.

Now, apparently, the creature served Trigon's daughter.

"But what does it mean?" Robin almost shouted in frustration. "All the things she's stolen are magic- and I think they're real magic, or she wouldn't have bothered- but what is she trying to do with them?"

"I can't help you, man," Cyborg said. "I know how to make every kind of machine on this planet work, but this magic stuff- out of my league."

"Yeah," Beast Boy agreed. "If only Raven hadn't come back in the middle of the night and taken all of her books back to her new little hideout. There's probably all kinds of stuff about magic in there."

"Perhaps we might find assistance from someone else?" Starfire suggested. "Surely there is someone who studies these things and could help us- someone like Raven." The Tamaranean's voice trailed off quietly.

"Yeah, that'd be great- except all the magic people we know are bad guys." Beast Boy sighed. "Mumbo, Malchior, Mother Mae-eye, Trigon- not exactly our fan-club."

"Wait a minute," Cyborg said suddenly. "What about Jinx? She might help."

"You're right," Robin said. "We're so used to thinking of her as a criminal, it's easy to forget she's one of us now. Give me a minute- I'll bring her up."

A few minutes later, the face of a girl who bore more than a passing resemblance to Raven appeared on the viewscreen. Certainly the strange, pale gray skin-tone was the same, and the faintly glowing eyes were also eerily similar. But the look of impish amusement on Jinx's face was something that one would never, ever see on Raven- and a reminder that while she was certainly not evil, Jinx was probably the least moral person Robin had ever given a communicator to.

"Hello, o Fearless Leader," Jinx said, her tone light and mocking. "Forgive me if I don't curtsy. Just not my style."

"Jinx, we need your help."

"O, please tell me how I might assist you, O Great One!" Jinx adopted a very false look of servility as she said this, but there was laughter in her eyes.

Robin sighed. "Look, Jinx- I know you don't particularly like me. But could you please try to be serious? We don't exactly have time for games."

"Whatever, Robin," Jinx looked at him sharply. "What do you want?"

Robin pulled up a list of the items stolen by the demons during the past week. "Someone has been stealing magical objects from around the city. I'm sending you the list now- can you tell me what they're for?"

Jinx was silent for several moments, apparently studying the list that had been transmitted to her communicator. "Well, most of this stuff looks pretty low-key- at least, as far as magic goes. Atlantean dust holds a lot of power, and a crystal prism can help you focus your will. Pretty generic, all told- could be for just about anything. But I'm curious about this book. What's it look like?"

Cyborg stepped up. "Museum site said its black, with words on it in silver. Weird words- don't match any known language. And-"

"And they make you feel a little sick just looking at them," Jinx finished, and sighed. "Idiots! What were they doing, putting something like that in a museum?"

"Then you know what it is?" Robin asked.

"Anybody who knows anything about magic knows what it is," she snapped. "Your thief has just gotten their hands on the Codex of Asthra Kall."

"The what of who?" Beast Boy asked, a glazed look crossing his eyes. "Am I the only one here who doesn't speak wizard?"

"It's a spellbook," Jinx explained, "Written by a powerful sorcerer named Asthra Kall thousands of years ago. He thought he could tear open the curtain between dimensions, bring hell to earth. He tried, but failed, and was consumed by his own magic. But he left the book, to lead someone else in his footsteps- to finish what he started. And some stories say he had help writing the book, a powerful demon."

"Trigon," Robin whispered.

"Yeah," Jinx said, strangely subdued. "Him. Anyway, why didn't you just have Raven tell you all this? Save you the phone bill, at least."

"I'd rather not talk about that," Robin said. "But where are you? If this book's as dangerous as you say, we could use your help."

"I'm afraid not- Kid Flash and I are currently enjoying the warm, tropical Caribbean." Jinx gave a slight smirk. "I'll say this- that guy sure knows where to find a good time."

Robin sighed. Just what he needed. "Is there anything else you have to tell us about this?"

Jinx though for a moment, then nodded. "No one- not even Asthra Kall himself- was ever able to make the spell work completely. But if they could, it would be too powerful for one mage to control. It would take a live sacrifice to power it- on a huge scale."

"How big are we talking?"

Jinx looked grim. "If the spell is cast right, it'll take Jump City off the map completely- and do a real number on the state."

* * *

Raven looked up from her meditation as the fiery demon appeared before her, the black book in its arms._ I have what you requested, mistress_, it said in its hollow voice.

"Very good," she replied. "I am pleased with your work." The creature glided over, and she took the Codex from its hands. "Leave me, now, but stay alert. I might need to call you again."

The demon bowed and vanished, and Raven looked down on her prize and smiled. The words that no linguist could decipher were plain to her eyes- the language of demonkind may have been beyond mere mortals, but then, so was she. The writing told of Asthra Kall, his madness and power, both of which he bound, under Trigon's guidance, into his masterwork.

Trigon. Everything in Raven's life came back to him, really. In his eternal quest to increase his already mind-boggling power, the Lord of Darkness had spawned her to be the vessel that would bring him into the mortal world, had intended her to be as much a tool as the foul book she now held in her hands. He had underestimated her all along, and paid for it dearly once. Now was the time for him to do so permanently. If millions of others had to die for this to be possible, so be it. What were human lives to her?

And so Raven would invoke the ancient rites laid down by Asthra Kall, but she would not use them for Trigon's benefit- far from it. Rather than trying to cause hell on earth, she would do the opposite- tear open a portal to allow herself entry to her father's realm. Then, charged with the power of ten million human souls, she would face the Terrible One in battle, and vanquish him for all time. Then, at last, she would no longer be Darkness's daughter. She would be Darkness itself.

The pages of the Codex rustled approvingly.

* * *

Robin was still stunned as he hurried out of the Tower's control room. The scope of the approaching disaster- it wasn't the end of the world, but for Jump City it would be something close. He needed to prepare, but they did not have much time. Raven had all the tools she needed. Surely the spell would be cast soon. Perhaps even tonight.

Part of him still couldn't believe that _Raven_ was the one who was doing this. _No_, he said to himself fiercely. _It's not her. It's that thing she kept locked up in the back of her head for years, out with a vengeance. It's not human- it's a demon. Pure evil. She's probably watching helplessly, as horrified as we are._ That didn't change the facts, though- they had to save her, or destroy her. Any other option would result in total annihilation.

Robin suddenly stopped as he felt Beast Boy's hand on his shoulder. "Robin," the changeling said, "Cyborg sent me to get you. There's a call, back on the computer."

"Is it Jinx again?" Robin said dully. "Tell Cyborg to talk to her. I'm going to be busy."

"Robin, this is kinda important," Beast Boy said. Robin took a good look at him, and saw a haunted look in his eyes- and deeper down, anger. It was a kind of expression Beast Boy used seldom indeed. "Dude, he asked for you."

Wondering who _he_ could be, Robin hurried back down the hall, passed his other friends, and stepped back into the main room. And then he saw who he was, and stopped dead in his tracks.

A face dominated the viewscreen, a face hidden behind a featureless mask. The only thing on that face that seemed alive was a single eye, burning with madness and fierce, cruel intellect. It always amazed Robin, whenever he saw this face, that this one eye seemed capable of conveying the whole range of emotions- and it needed to, because it was the only part of this man that he ever allowed to show emotion at all.

Robin knew this face well, for it had haunted him ever since he first glimpsed it in the woods north of the city, many months ago. This was the thing that kept him up at night, the evil that haunted every dark corner of his mind. At last, he managed to say the name that went with this masked face, and the darkness that lurked beneath it.

"Slade."


	10. Chapter 9: The Beginning of the End

**Chapter 9- The Beginning of the End**

"Slade."

The name seemed to hang in the air for hours after Robin spoke, though in truth only seconds passed. The masked figure inclined its head in acknowledgement. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't disconnect you right now," the leader of the Titans finally managed to hiss.

"Come now, Robin," Slade replied, his voice cool and emotionless as always. "It has been too long since we've had the opportunity to have a nice little chat. I must admit, I've been missing them. But more to the point, we have a common concern."

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Robin, who knew full well. The last thing he wanted to do right now was discuss Raven's… condition with this monster. But although Slade's mask remained expressionless as always, his single eye seemed to laugh.

"You know to what I am referring Robin- or rather, to whom- so don't play the fool. You will merely eat up our valuable, already limited time."

"What do you want?" Robin grated out.

Slade's eye widened slightly. "Why, I want the same thing that you want- I want Raven restored to her sanity, and, barring that- _neutralized_."

"Why do you care?"

The masked criminal on the screen shook his head like a teacher who found himself highly disappointed by a student's answer. "Really, Robin," he said, "You really can do better than that. I know you have a brain, and quite an impressive one in fact- use it! Raven has no love for me. Do you forget who served as Trigon's agent during his, shall we say _transactions_ with his daughter? I do not. I have no desire to once again be caught on the wrong side of a wrathful demon."

Robin smirked. "Maybe it escaped your notice, but I don't like you much either. Why shouldn't I just let Raven have her revenge? You deserve it and a hundred times worse!"

Once again, Slade seemed to chuckle silently. "But you wouldn't, not when it came down to it. I never was able to beat that noble streak out of you. You could no more leave me to your insane friend's tender mercies than you would be able to strike the killing blow yourself. But there is another reason- Raven plans to revenge herself on all her enemies at once. You know that she acquired the Codex of Asthra Kall this morning?"

"Yes," Robin responded reluctantly. "Why should that change things?"

The eye seemed to bore through Robin's mind. "I told you before, Robin- playing the fool does not suit you. You know full well that when she casts Kall's greatest spell, we shall both die- as shall this city."

"Then why don't you leave?"

Slade shook his head. "Strange as it may seem to you, Robin, I am rather fond of this city- my city. I have put much effort into it, and would so hate to have to entrench myself elsewhere. But most of all- to leave is to admit defeat, and that is something I know neither of us will ever do."

Slade was right. He and Robin, for all their mutual loathing, understood each other on a primal level. Neither of them would ever admit defeat, not while he still had life in him. Slade had even gone far beyond that, once. Robin still had nightmares of him standing there in the frozen street, casually snapping his broken neck back into place…

"So, what's your point?" Robin asked, trying to bring the conversation back on track.

"I see no reason to exert myself in this matter if it is unnecessary. I do believe, Robin, that you and your _friends_ are more than willing to go after Raven on your own. It's rather touching, actually. But I think I shall give you an extra incentive. If Raven has not been dealt with in some form by midnight, I _will _take matters into my own hands. And I don't think I will be inclined towards mercy."

Robin snorted. "And what makes you think you can defeat her? I thought you were scared of her!"

Slade inclined his head. "I am cautious, Robin, not afraid. I will not rush headlong towards my own destruction, but neither will I shy from risking myself if the rewards are great enough. And I believe I have the means in my possession to destroy her, as you should well be aware. I defeated the father, did I not? I can handle the daughter."

Robin laughed darkly. "_You _defeated Trigon? It was Raven who sealed him back in the underworld- certainly not you."

"And would Raven have returned from her own sojourn in hell without my help? Would you have lived to deliver a passionate speech about hope that reawakened her courage without my help? Think on that, Robin- were it not for me, this world would now be ended. Think on what you owe me. Someday- not today, but soon- I will collect that debt." The screen flickered briefly, and went dark.

* * *

The signs were traced upon the floor in glowing Atlantean dust. The crystal was tied to her forehead with platinum wire. Candles and incense burned around the room, laid out in the pattern set down by Asthra Kall long ago. The preparations were complete. Soon, Raven's time would be at hand.

"Do you feel it, father?" she whispered. "What of you, my former friends, and you, Slade in your hole? Do you feel that your doom is upon you?"

_But at what cost?_ A voice seemed to whisper in her head. _What will you gain from this, but to become another Trigon? Doesn't this world have enough demons?_

"Be silent," she ordered the voice. "This is my life now, not yours. I will do with it as I please." Raven raised her hands and beckoned. A pair of flames rose beyond the mystical signs and coalesced into giant, pale skinned demons in iron masks, their flesh marked with unholy signs. These creatures were among the mightiest of demonkind, ranked only below the great lords. They had served her father. Now they served her. Though she wasn't strong enough yet to wrest control of whole armies from Trigon, these two would be enough for her purposes tonight.

"I must meditate to prepare my powers," Raven said. "I must not be disturbed before I have gathered the strength for this spell. Allow no one to enter the building." The demons nodded and vanished, reappearing by the doors down below. No one had tried to enter the building since she had taken it over, but Raven had the suspicion that her one-time teammates would try something tonight. But they could not stop her now.

Floating in midair, legs crossed, Raven spoke the mystical words and focused on her hatred of all who had wronged her. At long last, her terrible vengeance was at hand.

* * *

Robin felt soiled as he related Slade's words to the other Titans. When he was through, Cyborg scowled deeply and Beast Boy and fully adopted an uncharacteristically serious expression- he had loved Terra, and hated Slade for what he did to her.

"Robin," Starfire said at last, "We must not let him do this! Raven is still our friend, despite… everything. And I know that there is still good in her, even though the evil now rules. We must help Raven- and stop Slade." Star's hand curled into a fist, and her eyes glowed green.

"I know Starfire," Robin replied. "Raven is still inside that monster- she managed to take control long enough to save us from herself. But how can we protect our friend when our enemy is in the same body?"

"Why couldn't Blood have just left well enough alone?" Cyborg asked no one in particular. "Why couldn't he have gone off and played golf, or complained about the good old days- you know, things _ordinary_ old people do. We'd all be a whole lot better off- him too."

"It was not just the Brother Blood," said Starfire sadly. "I have been inside Raven's body, and I know that her powers respond to her darkness. Brother Blood unleashed the evil, but it was always inside of her. He did not create that evil, and neither did Raven. It is Trigon who is responsible for this."

"We all have darkness inside of us," said Robin. "I know that. But how can we save her?"

Suddenly Beast Boy looked up, his eyes gleaming. The shapeshifter was well-known for his rash, often inexplicable behavior, but when he put his mind to it, he could be quite clever. The look on his face now plainly said he had an idea.

"You both said 'evil inside'", he said excitedly, looking from Robin to Starfire. "And that gave me an idea." Beast Boy leaned in closely. "I think I know how to save her."

"Beast Boy, are you sure-" Robin began to ask, but Cyborg cut him off.

"I think I know what BB's talking about," he said. "Let's hear what he's got to say."

Robin listened to Beast Boy's plan, and when it was through, he simply had to nod in amazement. It could actually work- provided they didn't all get killed in the process.

But then, trying not to get killed while doing something crazy was rather in a superhero's line of work.


	11. Chapter 10: Raven the Terrible

**Chapter 10- Raven the Terrible**

Night was falling as the Teen Titans arrived at the shadowed tower where they had battled Brother Blood a week ago, and Raven now made her home. The building was completely still, but the shadows that hung about it seemed to writhe like living things, as if the mind that had made them was troubled- or else it was focused entirely upon some other matter, leaving its creations unattended. The sight was, as Beast Boy put it, 'freaky'.

"Remember, team," Robin said as they approached, "we need to follow our plan if we have any hope of saving Raven. Starfire and Cyborg, you stay with me. We're going to try and stop Raven from finishing her spell. Beast Boy- you know what to do." All three nodded. Robin looked from one determined face to the next, and then the Titans marched together towards the dark skyscraper.

But even as they approached the door, the ground began to shake violently. A pair of holes burst open in front of them, spewing fire and ash, and from them arose two monstrous shapes; pale warriors in iron masks, wielding flaming axes like the one Slade had used during the final battle with Trigon. Robin had never seen anything like these creatures before, but he knew what they were.

"Demons," he whispered.

"LEAVE THIS PLACE, MORTALS," one of the demons thundered in a voice that seemed to rise from the Abyss itself. "DEATH ALONE AWAITS YOU HERE."

"Somehow, I don't think so," Robin shot back. "Teen Titans… GO!"

The team sprang into action. Cyborg's arm was up and converted to cannon form, firing blast after sonic blast. Starfire was in the air, hurling starbolts down on the fearsome creatures. Robin drew a pair of his birdarangs and locked them together so that they formed a slender (but highly durable) sword; he lunged forward and caught the closer demon's axe-blow as it descended. The two combatants stood there and shoved against each other.

The other demon moved to help its companion, but Beast Boy was ready. Changing into a massive green gorilla, he hurled himself bodily onto the creature, knocking its axe away. The two rolled over and over on the ground, wrestling mightily.

Robin, meanwhile, was losing the test of strength with his opponent. He was a skilled warrior, but in terms of raw physical power he just couldn't match this abomination of the underworld. The starbolts peppering its back didn't even seem to register- what hope did he have? He needed a better plan. Disengaging, Robin ducked under the demon as momentum carried it forward and it buried its axe in the pavement. Seeing an opening, he reached into his belt and pulled out a small disk. Flipping a switch, he hurled the weapon and watched it burst on the demon, covering the monster with a thick white mist. When it cleared, the demon was frozen solid.

"Starfire, Cyborg! Now!" Robin shouted. Both Titans turned the full force of their blasts on the frozen demon. It glowed and shook for an instant, and then it shattered.

"Boo-yah!" Cyborg shouted. "One down and one to go!"

Suddenly from behind them there came a monstrous roar. The Titans spun and saw the other demon lift Beast Boy up and hurl him against the building wall, where he reverted back to human form and lay groaning. "YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS INSULT, VERMIN!" the demon howled at them. "I WILL BURN THE FLESH FROM YOUR SOULS AND SUBJECT YOU TO ALL THE TORMENTS OF THE ABYSS!"

"You know, I'm getting really sick of you creatures," Robin growled. He primed another frost bomb. "Time to return to the pit you crawled out of." He hurled his weapon.

This demon, though, had witnessed its comrade's fate, and was ready. It waved a hand absently, and the bomb burned to a crisp in midair, the charred pieces collapsing on the ground at its feet. The creature contemptuously stepped on them, laughing darkly.

Starfire floated down beside Robin. "You have another plan, yes?" she asked hopefully.

Robin thought for a moment. "I think so," he said finally. "Cyborg, let's keep it busy. Starfire- GET THAT AXE!"

Star shot off like a streak of green lightning, and the two boys turned to face the monster. "That's right, big guy," Cyborg whispered. "Come and get it!" Lowering his sonic cannon, he let loose with a powerful blast that struck the monster square in the chest. The demon seemed unharmed, but it was clearly angry. It charged towards Cyborg in a fury- and then changed course when a hail of birdarangs stuck in its shoulder. Howling in fury, it seized one of its two assailants in each hand and lifted them to where they assumed its eye-level was.

"NOW YOU WILL KNOW THE TORMENTS OF THE FIERY VOID!" it rumbled, and then began to squeeze. Robin felt the grip tightening painfully around him, felt his air supply being slowly cut off- and then the demon roared in pain and stumbled forward.

"It is you who shall know pain," a familiar stilted but musical voice rang out from behind the demon, and then it roared again. Then, shuddering, the creature fell forwards and burst into flaming shards. Robin and Cyborg fell to the ground, both of them highly grateful for their newfound ability to breathe. Looking up, Robin saw Starfire standing over the remains of the demon, flaming axe held lightly in one hand.

"How'd you know that axe would kill it?" Cyborg asked.

"Remember when we fought Trigon, how he didn't start feeling real pain until Slade hit him with that demon axe?" Cyborg nodded. "I figured that these would be much weaker, so the weapon would hurt them even more- but Star's the only one of us with the strength to use it."

Starfire looked at the axe in disgust. "It is an evil thing, Robin," she said. "It feels filthy in my hands." She threw the weapon down and then reached down to help Robin to his feet. "But if by using it I was able to save your life, I am thankful for it."

"And I'm thankful for you," Robin replied. Starfire turned her face away to hide her blush.

"Hey, dudes!" Beast Boy had just gotten back to his feet by the walls, and was waving impatiently. "We need to hurry. If we don't stop Raven by midnight, that creep in the mask is going to put her down hard, remember?"

"Right," Robin said. Turning towards the doors, Robin led his team into the shadows surrounding the building. They were cold and wet, and seemed to be filled with shifting shapes and whispering voices, but otherwise they were harmless. Still, they set Robin's hair on end, and he was glad to reach the door. Reaching out tentatively, he gave it slight push- and to his surprise, it opened easily.

"Raven must've trusted her demons to guard her," he muttered, and they entered the deserted lobby. It looked much the same as it had a week ago, except that now even Blood's mind-controlled receptionist was gone. There was no source of light, and yet everything remained visible with a kind of cold clarity.

"I think this is officially the spookiest place we've ever been," Cyborg observed.

"Beast Boy, are you ready?" Robin asked.

"Yeah," the shapeshifter replied. "I memorized the map Cyborg printed out for me, and I think I know where Raven will be keeping her stuff. You just keep her busy till I get there."

"We will. Good luck."

"You, too," Beast Boy said, and then he was gone, replaced by a green crow- or, possibly, a Raven- that flew up a nearby stairwell.

"Well, team, this is it," Robin said as they entered the elevator and once more punched the button for the penthouse. "Are you with me?"

"We are with you, Robin," Starfire said as the elevator began to rise.

"We got your back," Cyborg added.

The rest of the elevator ride was silent, and seemed an eternity. Finally the light flashed, and the doors opened to reveal the penthouse office where this whole affair had begun- and where it would end.

The place had changed. Strange designs were scrawled on the floor in some sort of glowing powder, and candles were set and intervals around the room, giving off copious amounts of colored smoke. The shadows hung about the windows and prevented any outside light from entering. And there, in the heart of the mystical design, Raven sat in midair, legs crossed and four eyes closed, a strange crystal bound about her forehead instead of the usual chakra stone. In the air before her hovered a great black book with silver letters- the Codex of Asthra Kall.

Raven seemed to be perfectly still, but every so often she would mouth words. Robin listened closely, and when he caught them, he shuddered. "_Trigonath metrion zinthos_," she was repeating. "_Trigonath metrion zinthos_."

"She's meditating," Robin said in a quiet voice, as though anything else would break the strange spell of the room. "She must be gathering her strength for the spell."

"Yes," a quiet voice whispered, and it took the three Titans a moment to realize it was Raven who had spoken. "I am ready, now. You will be given a great privilege, my friends- the chance to witness my triumph firsthand. You should be honored."

"We're not here to witness anything, Raven," said Robin. "We're here to save you."

"Save me?" Four red eyes flashed. "I told you before- I DO NOT NEED SAVING!"

Robin had never heard Raven speak in a voice so loud and harsh before- in fact, he couldn't remember ever hearing anyone speak like that. The voice seemed too loud and terrible to have come from a human throat, and the force of it nearly rocked him off his feet- and that wasn't the end. Raven lightly dropped to the floor, the Codex clutched under one arm, and raised her other hand to deliver a deadly blow. Black lightning lanced from her fingertips and struck her former teammates, sending them sprawling. Smoke rose from their still forms.

"I am sorry it had to be this way," Raven whispered, a tone of wistful sadness in her voice, "But all who stand in my way will be swept aside. Farewell." She raised her hand again, and power crackled in the air.

* * *

Beast Boy flew through the airducts of the great skyscraper, keeping his map fixed firmly in his mind. People who met him often had the impression that he was stupid, but that was not technically the case. Beast Boy had a brain- he just thought that overanalyzing things was boring, no fun, and gave you headaches. But when he needed to, he could think quite well and clearly. Now was one of those times.

At last, Beast Boy found the room he was looking for- a well-appointed apartment a few levels below the penthouse. Changing into a fly, he zipped into the room, and the shifted to himself to get a good look at his surroundings. Magical objects and general spooky things everywhere- he was right. This was Raven's new bedroom.

Frantically, Beast Boy began to sort through the objects on Raven's nightstand, looking for the one thing that could save them. At last, he found it. Shifting into a monkey that could both carry the object and fit through the ducts, Beast Boy hurried from the room. His team needed him.

* * *

Robin groaned in pain as wave after wave of agony shot through him. But he wasn't dead- not yet. "What's the matter, Raven?" he managed to gasp out. "Why can't you kill us? Are you still more human than you realize?"

Raven snorted. "Do not think I am in any way still influenced by Arella's heritage. I need you alive so I can get the maximum energy from Asthra Kall's spell. Then you will die, along with this city- and I will have the strength I need to throw down Trigon forever. Is that not a cause worth dying for?"

"Not the way… you're doing it," Robin said. "You can't use evil… to defeat evil. Maybe you can… to stop evil people, but by becoming a monster… to fight monsters you just make all the evil in the world… stronger."

"You have no comprehension of that which you speak of!" Raven snarled.

"I think I do," Robin said, his voice becoming stronger. "Let me tell you a story my mentor told me. When he first came to Gotham City, he met an insane criminal genius who wanted to prove that everyone was just as evil as he was. He tried to force my mentor to kill him- to bring him down to his level, to show that even the best of us can fall. In the end, Batman won because he _didn't _kill the Joker- he proved him wrong. Trigon is like the Joker. He wanted you to be a monster, and now you're giving him what he wants. What does it matter if you win this way, because if you do, all you will have done is to give evil a new face- your face. Is that what you want?"

"BE… SILENT!" Raven roared, her face contorting into a mask of rage. The whole room seemed to quake at the unleashed power, and Robin, Cyborg, and Starfire were hurled back against the wall. Cords of darkness snaked around them and bound them fast.

"There," Raven said, still shaking slightly from anger. "That will hold you until I am done. Now hear me, creatures of darkness! Hear me, defenders of light and mortals who walk the shadowed path. Tonight, the world changes- no, the _universe itself_ changes. Trigon's days are ended! My days are at hand." Stepping into the heart of the mystical diagram, Raven opened the Codex and began to chant the words laid down long ago by Asthra Kall, words of dark power that had never been spoken in their entirety on the mortal plane. Robin could feel the words twisting inside his mind, almost comprehensible, but off just enough to become meaningless. The powder began to glow brighter, and to match it a fire built in the gem on Raven's forehead. Robin felt his life be leached from his body.

And then a green monkey dropped from the ceiling and landed in the middle of the Codex. Raven's words faltered, and the spell was broken. The Atlantean dust burned black, and the focusing crystal exploded. The candles flickered and went out, and the Codex itself was now lying on the ground, being thoroughly bent, torn, and mud stained by Beast Boy's now human feet.

"YOU!" Raven shrieked, any trace of calm composure gone. Her white hair rustled in a wind that no one else could feel, and her eyes blazed with hellfire. "You have been a blight on my existence long enough, Beast Boy! This time, you will die." She raised her hand and shot bolts of black lightning.

"No, Raven," Beast Boy said, raising the object he had brought, "It's time for you to take a good, long look at yourself." He held the object up so Raven could see. It was a mirror.

"No!" Raven gasped, but it was too late. The black lightning struck the mirror, and the magical portal into her mindscape came to life. There was a great roaring of wind and sound, and then Raven, Beast Boy, and the other three Titans were dragged together into darkness.


	12. Chapter 11: Quoth the Raven

**Chapter 11- Quoth the Raven**

The drone camera scuttled back out of the way as Raven blasted the Titans with the black lightning. It was small, unobtrusive- none of them even knew it was there- but still, its programming was clear- self-preservation at all costs. The master required the information it was transmitting.

Far away, deep beneath the city, that master watched as the drone's transmission was displayed for him on a video screen. Slade shook his head as he watched Robin and his friends blasted back, writhing in pain. "Pathetic," he whispered. "Really, Robin, I expected better of you."

Slade reached down to his belt and removed the device he had prepared in the event that the Titans failed- a ruby pendant that seemed to glow with its own inner light. The Ring of Azar was not the only thing he had taken from Trigon's realm while in the Demon King's service; the ruby was a weapon of tremendous magical power. Slade preferred technology and wit to magic- better, in his opinion, that a man should succeed based on ruthlessness, skill, and clever planning than by relying on the crutch of the supernatural- but in some cases, it was all that was effective. When Raven summoned the energies for her great spell, Slade would activate the ruby's own enchantment, and Raven spell would be seized and drawn within the stone, along with her soul. When that happened, killing her would be as easy as smashing the pendant beneath his boot.

There- it was time. Raven had begun her spellcasting. Slade lifted the pendant before his eyes and began to swing it back and forth, chanting the words he had memorized in the demon realm- and then he stopped, staring at the screen, his one good eye widening slightly. The green fool had come out of nowhere and broken the spell- what was that in his hand? A mirror? Then the screen went dark for what Slade estimated to be about five seconds- and when it cleared, the Titans were all gone. The mirror lay on the floor of an empty room.

"Well, now," Slade said to himself, lowering the pendant. "What a curious turn of events _this_ is."

* * *

Robin stood on a plain of grey rock beneath a black, red-flecked sky. Beast Boy and Cyborg had told him that this place was in some way a symbolic representation of Raven's mind- that didn't make it any less eerie. The air and land were completely still, lifeless except for the flock of black birds that perched on the dead, twisted trees- waiting, it seemed, but for what? Every so often one of them would give a dry, scratchy _caw_, but otherwise the mindscape was completely silent.

Robin turned to his teammates, who stood behind him, staring out into the empty sky. "Beast Boy- this was your plan. What do we do now?"

"Last time I was here, this place was full of different Ravens," the shapeshifter said. "All the different parts of her mind. The demon side was one of them- so if Raven's good side is anywhere, it'll be here."

"But how do we find her?" Starfire asked. "This place- it is so cold, so empty. Where do we look?"

"Well," Cyborg put in, "last time we were here, we didn't really find anything- it found us." At that precise moment, a huge tree, larger than any of the others, sprouted from the center of the plain. "Like that," Cyborg added.

The tree was the only thing the Titans had to go on, so they began to walk towards it. When they reached its base, the tree seemed to have grown to such a great height that it almost blotted out the strange sky. But there was nothing on it to suggest that Raven was anywhere nearby. Robin motioned, and the team followed him as he led the way around the trunk. And there, on the other side, they saw her.

She was bound to the side of the tree by thorn-covered branches that held her upright, her arms held out and her legs bound together. She was dressed all in white, and though a hood was pulled low over her face, the Titans knew she was Raven. But she was different from the Raven they knew- her skin was pale, but within the normal human range rather than that eerie grey they were used to, and her hair, from what they could see of it beneath the hood, was black rather than violet. This was the part of Raven that symbolized her human soul, even as the thing that now possessed her body embodied her demonic power.

"Raven," Robin whispered in pity and horror as he looked at her. "What happened to you?"

"Robin?" she said weakly, raising her head. "Is that really you? Or am I dreaming again."

"It's me, Raven," Robin said gently. "It's all of us. We're here to save you."

"You can't save me," Raven replied. "It's too late."

"No, Raven," Beast Boy said. "Remember Terra? It's never too late. You just have to believe that."

Robin drew a birdarang from his belt. "Cyborg, help me," he said. "We need to get her down." Snapping the weapon open, he began to viciously attack the branch that bound one arm, while Cyborg attacked the other with his chainsaw. At last they gave way, and Raven collapsed weakly onto the ground.

"It's all right, Raven," Beast Boy said as he helped her to her feet. "You're safe now."

"I am afraid that you are mistaken, my _friend_," a voice hissed from the darkness. The black birds had taken flight, and now they seemed to fly together, forming into a dark shape taller than the twisted tree, a demon girl swathed in black.

"This body is mine," the demon hissed. "This life is mine. Too long you kept me locked up here, in the depths of your darkest thoughts- but I am free now, and I shall never return there." She raised her hand, and it burned with black fire. "You were foolish to come here, Titans- now you will all pay the price!" She lowered her hand and sent the waves of destructive energy coursing down and her enemies.

And then, inches away, it vanished, swept away by white light. Raven was standing on her own now, and she walked towards her dark counterpart with a look of calm confidence on her face.

"How can this be?" the demon asked. "The power comes from Trigon- it is mine! How is it that you can oppose me?"

"Because you don't understand nearly as much as you think you do," Raven replied calmly. "I live in this mind, too- so I also have power here."

"Raven!" Robin shouted, "Get back! Let us fight her. You're still too weak."

"No, Robin," she said without looking back, "this isn't about that kind of strength. This is a battle for my soul- and it is my fight. I don't know if I can defeat her, but for all of your sakes I _have_ to try."

"Your fight?" the demon laughed. "You can't fight me. I was always our strength- all you ever did was hold us back. You kept us from our vengeance."

"Vengeance? For what?" Raven said. "Trigon and Slade have been paid back for their evil; the Titans were always our friends; and Azar's teachings were the only thing that kept us sane. From where I'm standing, we don't have anything to take revenge for."

"Azar made us weak!" the demon roared. "She forced us to keep our power limited because she feared us."

"She cared about us, and about this world. She knew what Trigon planned, and so she worked to save both the world and his daughter from the darkness. Because she knew that I could be saved, even when I didn't believe it myself. And Robin believed, and the Titans believed- even Slade believed in that, in his own way. Because I'm not a demon, not completely. I am Azar's light and Trigon's darkness, bound together in Arella's humanity. And that means that I have a choice!" As Raven spoke she seemed to grow, or perhaps the demon diminished. Either way, they were almost the same size now.

"Lies. The light cares nothing for us, and humanity is weak. Only in darkness is there strength."

"For Trigon, maybe, but not for me. He is pure darkness, but I'm a lot more complex. That's why I needed Azar's techniques to keep my mind under control- and you needed them too, to keep me out. But you can't use them very well, can you? All you do is destroy and hate. You can't keep your emotions under control at all."

"What are you saying?" The demon seemed afraid for the first time now.

"All those fits of anger, uncontrolled magic- you know why that happened. You can't clear your mind of hate because you are hate. If you can't control your emotions, you'll go insane- but I'm the only one here with self control. You need me," Raven smiled tightly, "but I don't need you."

"We shall see the truth of that!" the demon snarled. Raising both her hands she summoned the dark fire again, far more than before. Power crackled in the air about her as she drew more and more energy from her surroundings. Robin, Cyborg, Beast Boy, and Starfire were rocked almost off their feet by the mighty winds that raced towards the ball of energy the demon held. The trees and birds were drawn in completely and vanished. All that was left now was the empty land and sky, the Titans, and the two Ravens.

"I AM POWER!" The demon shrieked, and hurled the dark fire at her counterpart. Raven did not move, did not react at all- she simply stood there and let the fire pass into her- and was unharmed.

"Help me, friends," she said in a strained voice. "I need your strength for this, just like she needed Blood's strength."

"We're with you, Raven," Robin said as he and the other Titans came to stand by Raven's side. She stood there for a moment, seeming to bask in their presence, and white light formed a soft halo around her- and then she reached out to the line of black flame that linked her to the demon, and pulled.

The demon shrieked in agony as the black fire was dragged out of her- and with it came more Ravens, each of them wearing a cloak of a different color, each of them representing a different aspect of the sorceress's mind. One by one the flowed into white Raven's body, and as they did her skin once more became that strange grey, here hair the dark violet. Except for the white robe, she was now completely the Raven that the Titans knew.

The demon was reduced now to a single, human sized figure, her robe as red as the four eyes that still burned beneath her hood. She lay on her knees, panting, and looked up at Raven with pure hate in her expression. "Fool," she gasped, "I would have made us great."

Raven shook her head. "No," she whispered, "You would have made us into a monster, and somewhere, in the depths of whatever pit he is in now, Trigon would have laughed." She walked forward to face the demon, and as she did she shrank, till they were standing eye to eye.

"You're a part of me," Raven said sadly, "and you always will be. But light and humanity always will too. Maybe neither will ever win. Maybe that's the point." Then, to the shock of her friends, Raven bent down to the demon's level, and embraced her.

The darkness of Raven's mindscape vanished, replaced a searing light. Half of the light was white, and the other was red, and the two halves strove against each other. But in the end, the white light won.

* * *

Robin lay numb on a carpeted floor. He couldn't move, didn't want to. He was so tired, and he couldn't think of anything else that mattered. Then he realized, slowly, that someone was softly calling a word, and that word was his name.

Robin opened his eyes and looked up to see Raven leaning over him, apparently in between attempts to shake him awake. And she was herself again- grey skin, violet hair and eyes, blue robe. This was the friend who had helped the team through so many dangers, not the monster who had tried to destroy them.

"It's alright, Raven," he said, "I'm awake."

Raven smiled her small, quiet smile. "Then let's go home," she said.


	13. Epilogue: Reflections

**Epilogue- Reflections**

Raven stood on top of Titans' Tower and looked out over the city as the sun began to set. A cool breeze blew towards her, and she closed her eyes and lifted her face to it, letting it rustle her hair and cloak. She was tired, but could not sleep, not yet- there was too much on her mind. She had crossed an important threshold in her life, she realized. Raven had already defeated and rejected her father- now she had defeated the evil within herself.

"Raven?" a voice asked from behind her, and she turned to see Robin approaching. "I just wanted to see if you were okay." He came to stand beside her.

"I'm fine, Robin," she said wearily. "I just finished moving back in, and I wanted to think, is all."

"I can understand that," Robin said. "By the way- what did you do with the Codex? The museum still hasn't gotten it back."

"And they won't," Raven said forcefully. "That thing is too dangerous to be left lying around. I read it all the way through, and there's more in it than just the portal spell- it was the life's work of one of the most powerful and evil magic-users who ever lived. If someone with even a little magic got their hands on it- well, it wouldn't be pretty. I tried to destroy it, but I couldn't- so I teleported it into space. If we're lucky, it will fall into the sun, and that will be the end of it."

"Probably for the best," Robin replied. "How are you feeling about… what happened?"

"About as well as could be expected. This- hasn't been a fun week for me, Robin. I was trapped inside my own head, able to see what was happening, but I couldn't do anything. And part of me enjoyed all that evil, all that power. But I think I understand better now. I've seen evil from the inside, but I wasn't corrupted. I think I understand it better now, and I can fight it better, too." She smiled slightly. "Maybe that was supposed to be my destiny all along."

"Yo, you two!" A voice called, and both turned to see Cyborg, Starfire, and Beast Boy standing there. "You gonna stand up here all night?"

"Yeah," put in Beast Boy, "some of us are getting pretty hungry."

"And we must have a feast to celebrate friend Raven's safe return!" Starfire said while bobbing up and down in midair.

Raven smiled as she stepped towards her friends. "Let's go downtown," she said. "Pizza's on me."

* * *

The engine never stopped.

Day and night in this cavern far beneath the city streets the wheels and gears turned, weights lifted and were dropped, and steam was released from hidden valves. What the engine did, no one could say, but it worked continuously on its mysterious purpose, never resting never pausing.

Others might have found the constant clamor disturbing, but to Slade, it was almost soothing. He and the vast machine were alike in so many ways- relentless, mysterious, wheels within wheels, and no one would ever know why they worked so hard until it was far too late.

Of course there was the occasional hitch. Several times now, the Teen Titans had disrupted his schemes- disrupted, but never derailed. Slade made sure of that. Trigon had been a greater challenge, but in the end, even the mighty Prince of Darkness had fallen before his cunning. True, Raven had struck the final blow, but it was Slade who had maneuvered her into position. That the world in some way owed him for its continued existence was something that amused him greatly.

Robin had been mystified as to why Slade would work against Trigon, and was probably mystified again as to why he had worked to end Raven's own dark schemes. The boy had potential, but he had a distressing tendency to view the world in terms of pure black and white, good and evil. Heroes and villains. Evil, to his eyes, was a monolithic force of destruction. Slade knew better. In this world there were always and only ever villains. Some were just more honest about it than others.

But still, sometimes, Robin surprised him. Somehow the Boy Wonder had found a way to drag Raven out of the grip of demonic evil she had mired herself in. He had felt the same long ago, when the fool Beast Boy managed to turn Terra against him. Somehow these children possessed some quality that could thwart him. But really, Slade did not mind. He always had another plan, and having such inexplicable enemies helped keep him sharp.

He motioned with one hand, and his servant approached, carrying a small wineglass in one hand. Slade took it and stared into its depths for a moment, then lifted it in toast.

"To worthy adversaries," he said, and drank.


End file.
